According to readers of USA Today, Caledonia Golf & Fish Club in Pawleys Island is one of the top five public courses in America.
The 10 courses were nominated by an expert panel assembled by USA Today and were then voted on by readers.
Caledonia, a 6,526-yard par-70, was voted No. 4. It opened in 1994 as the first solo design by the late acclaimed course architect Mike Strantz, who also designed neighboring sister course True Blue Golf Club.
It features an entrance road through a tunnel of live oak tree canopies, is set along the scenic Waccamaw Neck, and features a closing par-4 with a second shot over water to a green nestled in front of rocking chairs on the clubhouse deck.
The USA Today honor is one of many for Caledonia, which was recently ranked by Golfweek among America’s top 100 resort courses. It is also consistently on Golf Digest and Golf Magazine’s lists of the nation’s top 100 public layouts.
Ahead of Caledonia on the list are No. 1 Bully Pulpit Golf Course in Medora, North Dakota; No. 2 Leatherstocking Golf Course in Cooperstown, New York; and No. 3 Payne’s Valley at Big Cedar Lodge in Hollister, Missouri.
Nos. 5-10 are Grizzly Ranch Golf Club (California), The Cardinal Course at St. John’s Resort (Michigan), Black Lake Golf Club (Michigan), Arrowhead Pointe Golf Course at Richard B. Russell State Park (Georgia), Oakcreek Country Club (Arizona), and Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course (Nevada).
USA Today said of the 10 courses: “The best public golf courses are impeccably maintained, set amongst gorgeous scenery, and most importantly are well-designed with challenging layouts and unique features that make for a rewarding round.”
